


December Days

by 126916912



Series: Deleted VeggieSamosa Works [2]
Category: The Boyz (Korea Band)
Genre: 30 days of fluffmas, Christmas, Found Family, Gen, Getting Together, M/M, Office AU
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-12-31
Updated: 2019-12-31
Packaged: 2021-03-27 04:15:39
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 18
Words: 19,310
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/30117018
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/126916912/pseuds/126916912
Summary: Sangyeon and Jaehyun spend Christmas almost together
Relationships: Lee Jaehyun | Hyunjae/Lee Sangyeon
Series: Deleted VeggieSamosa Works [2]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/2216148
Kudos: 1





	1. Ice Skating

Jaehyun doesn't even say hello back when Sangyeon answers the phone. He just says, "How do you feel about going halfsies?" 

There's an expectant pause after that so Sangyeon must reply with his own question. "Are you going to give me any context for this? Halfsies on what?" 

"Christmas!" 

Because it is that obvious apparently. Sangyeon sits back in his chair and frowns up at the ceiling. "Why?" 

"You're so unhelpful," Jaehyun grumbles. "Don't you want to get something good for the kids? Something they really want? Hyunjun’s present alone is going to set you back big time. So we should put together and get them something they each want." 

Honestly Sangyeon had been worrying about presents. He didn't really want to punish his credit card to the extent that he'd still be paying it off this time next year, especially not after all the doom and gloom warnings about credit card debt his family always gave. Jaehyun's solution is exactly what Sangyeon needed. So he agrees. 

They plan to meet during the week because Sangyeon needs to use up some annual leave days anyway and Jaehyun insists on meeting on his Wednesday off. Even if Sangyeon pretends to be inconvenienced it really is for the best. The Christmas Market isn't quite at its glittering height of festive decor and atmosphere but the wooden kiosks are lined along the street and Sangyeon can actually see what is for sale seeing as the crowds are thin this early in the day. 

"Do you think Hyunjun would notice if we bought him a designer knock-off?" Sangyeon asks as he gestures towards a stall claiming to sell all the best designs from Pendi and Channel and Lewis Vuitton. 

"This is why Hyunjun said he hates you," Jaehyun says, tired. 

"Did he really say that?" Sangyeon asks. It must be a lie but Jaehyun didn't even phrase it like the punchline to a joke like he usually would. 

"Let's find something for Eric first," Jaehyun says without answering the question. It isn't particularly encouraging, but if they're focusing on the task at hand Eric should theoretically be the easiest to buy for. 

Sangyeon had drawn up a list of gift ideas but Jaehyun looks over Sangyeon’s shoulder to read the list from his phone and makes a dissatisfied sound. 

"That's all practical stuff. Where are the actual presents? This is why Eric said he hates you."

Sangyeon is certain that nothing of the sort has come from Eric's mouth. Eric tells Sangyeon almost every day that he's the favourite. 

"What did Eric actually say to you?" Sangyeon asks as he jabs Jaehyun in the side. "He'd never say he hates me, even if he really did."

Jaehyun frowns, shrugs his shoulders. "He didn't say anything. I just don't want to get him a bad present."

"What's a good present then?" 

"You've met Eric," Jaehyun says flippantly. "You should know what he likes."

Sangyeon grins. He knows exactly what Eric wants but he'd wanted to buy some extras so he had more things to open. He's wondering whether Jaehyun had his own ideas in the first place. 

Sangyeon intends to split the cost of a Nintendo Switch with Jaehyun anyway but part of him wants to make Jaehyun earn the honour. 

Shopping around the Christmas Market is fruitless. They spend most of their time denying each other's ideas for small gifts and Sangyeon is close to giving up when they spend way too much money on burgers. The burgers cost about as much as a main course at a restaurant but Sangyeon writes it off as the price of pretending they're adventurous enough to try things like ostrich and kangaroo from their own impetus. 

Exotic meats don't make the best fuel for gift shopping though. They're still just as bored as before with things and it makes more sense to take a break when Jaehyun brings up another attraction of the Christmas Market. He mentions it casually, like he has only just seen it on his phone, and Sangyeon is bored enough of waddling through crowds pointlessly and finding nothing worth gifting. 

Taking a break to go ice skating turns out to be a good idea. Sangyeon can stop getting riled up every time Jaehyun dismisses any of his suggestions and he can also stop gearing up to sabotage any ideas Jaehyun might have himself. 

Also skating is fun. 

The sky has darkened to the premature royal of twilight and the outdoor ice rink is surrounded by the twinkling of fairy lights. It is a nice atmosphere and Sangyeon is glad that so many other people are getting to enjoy their time with someone special; friends and lovers and families are all holding onto each other and chatting as they skate anti-clockwise. Some show-offs whiz between the clusters of people and at the centre of the rink is a small girl spinning endlessly. 

"It's cold," Jaehyun notes on their fourth circuit. 

"We have ages left," Sangyeon grins. "Shouldn't you have thought about how cold you'd be before suggesting we do this?" 

Jaehyun is the one who wanted to look cool without any gloves. He shoves his hands under his armpits and huddles in on himself. Very cool. 

Sangyeon sighs. "You know you're worse than any of the kids, don't you?" 

Jaehyun raises his eyebrows, looks like he is about to retort but ends up half a stride behind when Sangyeon removes the glove from his left hand and passes it over. The gloves were a gift, expensive, so Sangyeon has no intention of losing possession of them, but Jaehyun's hands are cold so he should at least be able to warm one hand up. 

"What is this for?" Jaehyun asks. 

"I don't want your hands to fall off. I'm not going to be left carrying everything home and wrapping all the presents myself."

Jaehyun hums and slices his way closer on the ice, nudging Sangyeon back into the recreational flow. "What about my right hand? That's the important one."

"I'm not giving you both of my gloves." 

"You're so dumb," Jaehyun says, a merry lilt to his disbelief. He grabs Sangyeon’s hand and starts skating at a more strenuous pace so Sangyeon must put effort into keeping up instead of dawdling behind in a more leisurely skate. 

They're holding hands. There's no way around admitting that fact. Sangyeon doesn't mind it enough to mention it, especially when the hands they're clasping together are only slightly numb. Sangyeon squeezes just to be sure and Jaehyun glances at him briefly. When Jaehyun is watching the ice ahead he pulls Sangyeon’s hand closer against his side. 

"What would you do if someone saw us like this?" Sangyeon asks. 

Jaehyun shrugs, tries an ambitious turn and skates sideways alongside Sangyeon. "So what if they did? Are you going to make an excuse and pretend it never happened?" 

That is an interesting prospect. But there's a better prospect than pretending it never happened. He could bring it up at multiple opportunities just to see if it made Jaehyun squirm. Sangyeon is looking forward to seeing the results when he decides to bring this moment up in future. 

"I'm not going to forget this," Sangyeon grins. 

Jaehyun's expression remains neutral for a moment and he skids a little, faces the flow of skaters. Sangyeon smiles to himself. It is already a victory. 

The squirming is enough of a success that Jaehyun steers them towards the barrier at the edge. He releases Sangyeon’s hand but stands with his shoulder pressed against Sangyeon’s as they look out at the skaters smiling at each other beneath the artificial twinkling. 

"We're not going to find anything today, are we?" Jaehyun asks. 

"Probably not." 

"We'll have to come out again together, won't we?" 

Sangyeon nods, wonders if he is leaning too close or the mistiness between them is the condensation of frigid air. "We'll have to pick out another day. It might be difficult to get more time off on this side of Christmas."

"You'll work something out," Jaehyun reasons. "You have to. We'll ruin Christmas for at least three people if you don't find another day to go shopping."

Sangyeon laughs but he's not quite sure how he feels about having terms set out to him like this. 

A timid voice interrupts Sangyeon’s attempt to turn this around onto Jaehyun. "Excuse me. Could you take a picture of us please?" 

A girl with eyebrows curling into concern on her forehead is holding her phone vaguely between Sangyeon and Jaehyun. She's wearing a glove on the hand offering out the phone and her other hand is bare, frosted to pink, and curled against her chest cautiously. Behind her is a shorter girl with a heavy fringe whose eyes dart around cautiously. She is only wearing one glove too. 

Sangyeon takes the phone from the girl and tries not to smile too widely at how cute and shy they both are. "Where would you like to pose?" 

The girls link their bare hands and shuffle against the barrier. 

"Over here, please."

Sangyeon takes a picture but realises it is blurry. He doesn't need Jaehyun to point it out to him as he peers over Sangyeon’s shoulder. Sangyeon takes a couple more and just about manages to capture the moment when the shorter girl curls her friend's hair away from her cheek and swiftly plants a peck. 

Capturing the moment and the aftermath are precious and Sangyeon hands back the phone and says nothing about how flushed their cheeks are. 

The girls skate away, huddled together with their hands linked and Sangyeon hopes nobody ruins their Christmas by forgetting to buy them gifts. 

"That was cute," Jaehyun says. 

"We should have asked them to get a picture of us," Sangyeon grins. 

"Shut up," Jaehyun says, barely holding back his own smile. "My hands are cold."

Sangyeon wriggles his fingers and decides his hands must be cold too because of how much better his hand feels in Jaehyun's. 


	2. Hot Chocolate

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Sangyeon fails to give Hyunjun the Christmassy treat promised

Hyunjun sighs when he sees what Sangyeon has brought him. On anyone else his expression would smack of ungratefulness but Hyunjun never wears anything as clumsily as that. So he is disappointed. And Sangyeon did it to him. 

Of course something like this is Sangyeon’s fault. He had cheered merrily about how December was when festivities could really get underway and it was the perfect time to try fun new flavours. And Sangyeon had said he would bring a special winter surprise to Hyunjun’s desk to keep him going for the rest of the day. 

A sachet mix of hot chocolate in a tacky red and green mug wasn't really the sort of surprise Hyunjun must have imagined. But even as Sangyeon stutters over promises that this isn't it - this isn't the surprise because Sangyeon only wants to fill Hyunjun’s time with surprises of a higher calibre - Hyunjun offers a small smile. 

"Thank you for making this drink for me. It looks really tasty."

Hyunjun is lying but Sangyeon can't very well point that out. So Sangyeon hides out at his desk and avoids taking calls from people who only ever ask questions he has answered in emails he has already sent. He needs the time to think of a real surprise for Hyunjun. 

It is only when Chaekyung finds him at the photocopier and frowns at Sangyeon that he realises she was only mirroring his expression. He tries to relax the muscles between his brows but his face feels tight with his concern of the day. 

"I've caught Hyunjun pulling that face a lot too today," Chaekyung says sagely. "He's going to frighten away the executives when they visit the department to see how our restructuring has made us more efficient."

Chaekyung is clearly hinting at something but she changes subject quickly to complain about how all the paper decorations she'd used to decorate her department last year were thrown away and she needs to start from scratch this year. There is still time to worry about preparing decorations because all of the departments on their floor have held off on their competitive decorating until after the executives have finished bringing board members on tours to see the little people making their money work. 

But Chaekyung sneaks a stack of papers through the photocopier in full colour on Sangyeon’s login. They are garish images of cartoon elves and reindeer which must be replacements for last year's decorations. And it makes sense she'd be preparing these now, especially after remembering the brand new packs of blu-tac stacked on her desk. The executives are conducting their tours this afternoon. 

"I need to borrow Hyunjun this afternoon."

"What for?" Chaekyung asks. She taps the wrinkling of her chin and hums before adding, "It would be bad for you if anyone saw a kid that unmotivated in the enrollment office just the same as if they saw him in payroll."

"I'm not going to need him in my department," Sangyeon says. "I need him for a project off-site. Can you make up an excuse if any of your managers ask?" 

Chaekyung goes through great pains to look hard-done-by but she nods before beginning to sort through the copies printed from the machine. "I do too much for you."

"Thanks, I owe you one," Sangyeon says as he claps her on the shoulder. Chaekyung used to get mad when Sangyeon literally tallied favours in order to see who was in more debt to whom, so he reasons that he doesn't really have to mean it when he says he owes Chaekyung for something like this. 

Sangyeon dumps his own photocopies on his desk and grabs his coat and bag as he rushes down the corridor to the payroll office where Hyunjun and Chaekyung work. He decides he doesn't owe any extra favours for squeezing past Chaekyung in the doorway when she is trying to walk into her own office and he heads straight to Hyunjun’s desk. 

"Hi!" 

There's a pause where Hyunjun looks Sangyeon up and down before returning his own cautious greeting. "Hi?" 

"I need to borrow you this afternoon."

"What for?" 

"I need you for a top secret Internal Enrollment project," Sangyeon says, aware of the open ears at the desk beside Hyunjun. He doesn't want anyone to tell on Hyunjun, especially when it is important to add, "Shut down your computer. You probably won't be back in here today."

Hyunjun, thankfully, does not need telling twice. They manage to leave quickly and Hyunjun makes all the usual disappointed sounds about the weather as he pulls the hood of his full-length fur coat over his head. He glances at Sangyeon and links their arms together. "It's really cold. I'm not unhappy about you getting me out of work but why are you doing this?" 

"I was in the mood for some hot chocolate."

"The one you made me earlier was good. Thank you," Hyunjun says quickly. "I forgot to give back the mug though. I'll wash it tomorrow and give it back."

"It wasn't good," Sangyeon sighs. "When I was out with Jaehyun I saw a good place."

"Oh. So I really don't have to do any work?" 

"If anyone asks, you did lots more work when you came out with me," Sangyeon says. 

Hyunjun smiles, as sweet as ever, and Sangyeon is glad to be able to bend the rules like this. The way Hyunjun only needs to smile at Sangyeon wasn't the problem so much as Sangyeon’s resulting compulsion to give Hyunjun the world which was seen as preferential treatment and necessitated a transfer to a different department. But taking Hyunjun away from work gets rid of the guilt of treating him too nicely. Sangyeon loves Hyunjun and being able to make him smile over something as stupidly simple as buying a better hot chocolate than before is something he is still proud of. 

The place Sangyeon had spotted when he was with Jaehyun was as packed as it was when he was struggling to waddle through the Christmas Market crowds. People must have been making the most of the festive mood by coming whenever they could. Sangyeon wouldn't want to be elbow-to-elbow with this many strangers around the perimeter of an untreated wooden shed otherwise. 

Right now Sangyeon is glad to be here, half-exposed to the squally dusk of mid-afternoon, with Hyunjun who says, "Can I have the peppermint hot chocolate, please?" in a small voice when presented with the options. 

Hyunjun’s eyes are wide when presented with the huge mug topped off with a towering peak of whipped cream, marshmallow and honeycomb boulders, and the triumph of chocolate wafer cigars marking the summit. 

"Thank you," Hyunjun says before even tasting any of his drink. When he does he ends up with whipped cream smudged on his nose and Sangyeon can't refuse when Hyunjun asks to try Sangyeon’s Irish liqueur hot chocolate. 


	3. First Snow

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The first snow arrives

Sangyeon calls his farewell out to Eric and Rachel as they race to pack up all their things and leave. They make a funny pair, wrapped up with much more padding than the tropical office climate warrants. Once they're outside they might even freeze in the frigid evening air. 

Jaehyun waits until they've gone before he wheels his chair over from his desk at the back of the office to the desk Sangyeon had chosen to sit at that morning. 

"You're really still working," Jaehyun says, stock surprise. 

"You know winter is a tricky time of year," Sangyeon says. "There's no way you've finished all the things you needed to do today."

"And there's no way you could have forgotten that we don't get paid unauthorised overtime. Whatever you're doing now can be done tomorrow. Log off, loser."

Jaehyun is right but that doesn't mean Sangyeon is the type to admit it freely. He continues typing until his chair glides away from the desk with a push of Jaehyun’s foot on the seat. 

"Let's go already. None of these people are worth the hassle of responding to," Jaehyun says as he scrolls through the emails Sangyeon had opened to send out replies. He's not quite right about this. 

Sangyeon shuffles his seat closer to his desk once more and nudges Jaehyun out of the way. "Our job is literally to please all of these people. We only get paid for the hassle of responding to their emails."

Jaehyun huffs. "It's cold. All the people who drive have been spamming the chat with pictures of the traffic. Do you really want to rob me of the chance to get enough rest to come back tomorrow to let the other departments tell us we're not doing our jobs?" 

"You're annoying," Sangyeon says. He decides to give in. He saves his current email as a draft and leaves the rest for tomorrow. 

Jaehyun is already bundled up in his coat before Sangyeon has shut down his computer and he stands over Sangyeon with his hands on his hips. "I see that you've forgotten to bring your gloves today."

Sangyeon hasn't forgotten his gloves but he smiles. He packs his things away quickly and hopes things are neat enough that nobody could complain about him being a bad team leader because he can easily get distracted by things like this. 

"Oh no," Sangyeon says, shrugging his coat over his shoulders and setting the computer which monitors their calls to sleep. "My hands will freeze off on the walk to my car and I won't be able to drive." 

"Don't worry," Jaehyun says. He sounds almost too genuine as he makes a show of slipping the glove from one of his hands and passing it over to Sangyeon. Somehow they have ended up alternating who forgets to take their gloves out of their pockets but Sangyeon doesn't mind it. 

His hands wouldn't tingle and ache so much in the cold if they didn't have to pretend but without that they have no excuse. So Sangyeon says nothing when they're leaving the building which has the heating cranked up to tropical temperatures and he has even less reason to say anything when they buzz themselves out into the dark frozen air. 

Jaehyun pauses midway through a question about the budget for the office party and yanks Sangyeon to a stop. 

"What was that for?" Sangyeon asks. Truthfully he wants to do the same back and see how Jaehyun reacts to someone attempting to dislocate his shoulder but Jaehyun's eyes are glossed with the twinkle of winter as he stares up at the endless charred sapphire above. 

And then a miniscule flake of white flutters to roost on Jaehyun's hair. Sangyeon watches another mote of cold float down and another and another until he can't keep track of the fragments of the evening dizzying themselves in the condensing clouds of his own breath and Jaehyun's. 

"It's the first snow," Sangyeon says even though Jaehyun was the one to realise it first. He gets a nod for his trouble and Jaehyun's gaze settles on Sangyeon. 

Jaehyun's fingers flex around Sangyeon’s and he says, "We shouldn't stay out too long in the cold."

They're halfway across the carpark, just as far through the list of ridiculous requests Jaehyun has fielded from the office team in his quest for party nibbles, when Sangyeon interrupts. "Don't worry. You probably wouldn't be stuck with me or anything."

Jaehyun hesitates. His mouth looks like it is attempting a reply about the office party. But he gives up. He says, "That's not what I am worried about."

Sangyeon doesn't ask for the clarification of what Jaehyun really is worried about. He'd rather just enjoy the chill of the first snow of the year freezing the feeling out of everything except for the hand thawed by Jaehyun's. 


	4. Tree Decorating

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The company-wide office decoration competition arrives

Sangyeon thinks he potentially imagined seeing Hyunjun slip into the office because after ten minutes he hasn't detected any signs of sabotage. But it is the eleventh minute after maybe imaging Hyunjun that Sangyeon finds Hyunjun sitting cross-legged on the floor with Eric and Jaehyun making paper chains. 

"Hey, get out," Sangyeon says as sternly as he can. The words don't come out very stern at all but he tried his hardest. Hyunjun is a nice kid so he pretends to be bothered. 

"I just came to help."

"Why don't you get out if it bothers you so much?" Jaehyun asks, proudly holding up his paper chain. 

"Christmas decorations mean war," Sangyeon reminds them. "I'm not above friendly fire if that is what it takes to protect the enrollment department from payroll."

Jaehyun lowers his paper chain cautiously (a good move as both he  _ and  _ the linked loops are at risk) and asks, "What does that mean?"

"It means you're a traitor and I will actively encourage everyone to make you a pariah when Haein unveils how great the accounting offices look because she sent Hyunjun here to spy on us." Sangyeon glances at Eric but can't say his addendum guilt-free so he looks away. "I can't promise anything about protecting you from the ire of the others."

"Why are you being so dramatic? You're supposed to be happy," Jaehyun frowns. 

"No, he's right," Eric says thoughtfully. "Hyunjun should go. Even Sunwoo isn't here. That means this is serious, doesn't it?" 

"Eric gets it," Sangyeon says. He doesn't sound like a crazy person now that Eric is backing him up. He does however feel terrible just looking at the betrayal on Hyunjun’s face. "Listen, today is a day steeped in tradition and honour and it must be upheld."

"Right," Jaehyun agrees, "your tradition of pushing people down the stairs because you can't handle losing."

Sangyeon wishes he really did have a tradition of pushing people down the stairs, though he considers that might not be the best solution to his currently boiling blood. The first Human Resources investigation into his alleged violent streak had been stressful enough when he was innocent. Pushing Jaehyun down some stairs for real would probably only result in worse circumstances this time. 

"You're not allowed to make jokes about that when you're the one who got me into trouble."

Eric looks between Sangyeon and Jaehyun and Sangyeon can already tell what the question will be before he even opens his mouth. "How did you get into trouble?" 

Hyunjun groans and stuffs handfuls of paper strips against his ears.

"He pushed me down the stairs," Jaehyun says very seriously as Sangyeon tries to tell the truth. 

"Jaehyun tripped when carrying too many ornaments and he fell on the star which was supposed to go on top of the company tree. And to stop me from telling people how funny it was, he told everyone that it was my fault and I pushed him." Eric looks uncertain so Sangyeon adds, "Jaehyun was nowhere near any stairs. You can laugh."

"You cannot laugh," Jaehyun says firmly. His voice is less solid when he looks up to grumble at Sangyeon, "Why are you saying they can laugh? When I tried to laugh about it you told me it was too soon and you hadn't forgiven me for taking so long to tell HR that I might have misrepresented the truth."

"I still haven't forgiven you," Sangyeon says, perhaps a shade too honestly because any residual mirth drains from Jaehyun's expression. 

Sangyeon does feel a bit bad for the fact he made Hyunjun leave but he can't take any chances when this could be the year he gets to redeem himself and the decorations he has planned out in his creative vision are the best in the whole company. He'd come so close to winning the year that Jaehyun had ruined everything. for the sake of wanting to escape ridicule for one month per year for the rest of his time at the company. The enrollment department had been disqualified pending Sangyeon’s HR investigation and he couldn't even bear to watch as some clown from the off-site training team ascended the ladder to place the star on top of the humongous tree in the foyer. 

"Hey," Jaehyun says as he pulls up a chair beside Sangyeon’s snowflake station. He has been trying his hardest but rather than being pretty and mystical, the shapes he has cut out of the folded sheets of paper stolen from the printer can only be described as loppy. He can't even blame Jaehyun's interference for ruining them. 

"I'm busy," Sangyeon says. He gestures to his hideously botched paper children who only bear a passing resemblance to snowflakes. Jaehyun nods solemnly, like he understands Sangyeon’s struggles to form paper into something much more attractive than the actual results. 

"I just wanted to talk about earlier."

"I'll make it up to Hyunjun later," Sangyeon says, a thoughtless promise. He really intends to. Then he adds, "and Sunwoo. He obviously stayed away because you warned him. Poor Eric probably thinks I am unreasonable."

"You are unreasonable," Jaehyun says. He smiles and it is very unhelpful. "But I actually did want to ask you about that. Because you said you haven't forgiven me for that whole thing with the stairs. Is it true? Have you really not forgiven me four years later?" 

The fact that Jaehyun can refer to the incident as 'that whole thing with the stairs' so easily when there weren't even any stairs involved proves why Sangyeon should continue to hold his grudge. "I obviously haven't forgiven you. I almost lost my job."

"I told the truth eventually." Jaehyun's right. He did tell the truth eventually but it was only when Sangyeon had already handed in his 1 month notice and leaving and starting fresh looked like the best option. But Sangyeon didn't like to dwell on it. The important thing here is that this could be the fourth consecutive year where Sangyeon can't even save face by winning and getting to put a star on top of a tree. 

Sangyeon’s wish is a small one but it is yet to come true. 

"You trying to talk about this is making it difficult to pretend these snowflakes look good."

"They're whimsical and magical," Jaehyun says without any feeling. "I want to fix things so you might forgive me. We're friends now, we're managers of a department together, and we even have three beautiful children, you know? I don't want there to be any bad blood between us. So you can push me down the stairs for real and I won't say a word."

"You're an idiot."

"I really mean it though," Jaehyun says. "I want us to kiss and make up. Whatever you want, I will do it."

Jaehyun sounds too serious for Sangyeon to waste this on something small and petty, but the essence of downplaying something which would have marred his record at the company means having to only think of small recompense. So Sangyeon shrugs. "I want everyone who walks into this office to be sick of Christmas after five minutes."

Jaehyun pauses, licks a protest from the seam of his lips before he nods and claps Sangyeon’s shoulder. "Consider it done."

Jaehyun does work hard, even going as far as to tell off people who take breaks from cutting and pinning to do some of their actual work. But they don't win. And for the fourth consecutive year Sangyeon has to watch some other department get the glory of putting the star on the tippy-top of the tree in the foyer. 

"Hey," Jaehyun says as he loops a spare rope of tinsel around Sangyeon’s neck. "Next year that will be you."

Sangyeon sighs. It isn't likely. Even if next year he sends out spies of his own he will be watching Haein from payroll, or Changmin from IT, or Sojung from complaints, or some other manager of a department putting the star on a professionally decorated mammoth of a tree. 

"You don't think we missed our chance four years ago?" 

"No way. Besides, I have a flat that is going to look horrifically bare when I get home if someone doesn't help me to decorate," Jaehyun poses, casual, easy bait. But Sangyeon is an easy catch and he doesn't have anything to lose by agreeing to go home with Jaehyun. 


	5. Gift Shopping

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Finally, Sangyeon and Jaehyun make a start on their shopping list

For some reason Jaehyun isn't happy to discover what Sangyeon had planned to buy for Eric. If you ask Sangyeon though it is too late. They've flipped through the instore catalogue and checked the available stock on one of the tablets bolted to the customer stations. They've even paid and made smalltalk about running out of time for Christmas shopping with the woman who served them. 

And now they're waiting for the chosen gift to be located in the storeroom and brought out for Sangyeon to take home and think about wrapping. 

"A Switch," Jaehyun says, aghast. 

Sangyeon looks away from the electronic notice board showing the order numbers as they become ready for collection. He has time because his number is crowded in the middle of the pending orders list. He grins at Jaehyun. If Sangyeon had known shopping could get Jaehyun so rattled he would have skipped the ice skating the first time they tried. This is much funnier. 

"Are you alright?" Sangyeon asks, well aware that Jaehyun is not alright. 

"What are we going to look like when we take a Nintendo Switch into the office for Eric and we turn up with whatever thoughtless rubbish we bought for Secret Santa?" 

A number flashes on the screen with a trilling alert which jolts Jaehyun from his macabre mood for just a moment. But it isn't their number so he turns his sour expression back to Sangyeon. 

"Eric is going to have to move departments and we'll lose another child to accounts or somewhere just as bad. Stop pushing our children away from us."

Jaehyun is being maybe a shade too dramatic and he hadn't even paid up his half of the cost. But Sangyeon is a kind friend and will allow another half hour of complaining before demanding Jaehyun cough up. Not that he intends to let that half hour pass without irking Jaehyun some more. 

"I am sure you can find a new child in the person you picked for secret santa," Sangyeon says sagely. 

"You're sick. Do you think I could cast aside my dear children for some office loser?" Jaehyun grumbles. 

Sangyeon smiles. Jaehyun picked Sangyeon’s name out of the bucket and asked Hyunjun and Sunwoo for advice. Jaehyun hadn't asked Eric for advice because he can't keep a secret but Jaehyun forgot that Sunwoo and Hyunjun also can't keep secrets and reported to Sangyeon at their earliest opportunity. Sangyeon didn't think he'd spark such a special sort of joy inside himself from poking fun and seeing how uncomfortable Jaehyun gets at having Secret Santa brought up. 

"I hope your office loser wouldn't be upset about you saying things like this."

"If you don't say anything they won't find out," Jaehyun says. He's a beat late and Sangyeon rocks back on his heels as he watches their order number hop up the ladder and move one rung closer to teleporting to the eager column of fulfilled orders. 

"My lips are sealed. But forget that, do you reckon Eric might stop hating me when he sees I bought him a Switch?" 

"He doesn't—" Jaehyun aborts his response and tempers himself to a shrug. "Aren't you worried about the others? Buying Hyunjun accessories and Sunwoo a Lightroom licence and a fancy bag don't really cut it compared to this. I will have to tell them this was all your idea."

"If I must take the blame to save you then I will."

Jaehyun rolls his eyes but he doesn't argue with it. Sangyeon is happy to assume Jaehyun is grateful. Until he knocks his shoulder right into Sangyeon’s. 

"What's wrong with you?" Sangyeon grumbles at the impact. He's still rubbing his arm and attempting to look pathetic when he sees that Jaehyun is propping a woman back upright. 

"Are you alright?" Jaehyun asks, kind, soft. 

The woman looks flustered but smiles, averted eyes and rouged cheeks. She doesn't seem to be able to believe her luck at tripping and falling into someone helpful and handsome and she can't speak much sense as this helpful and handsome man helps her with the numerous bags that have slipped her grip. 

It is like something out of a movie, obviously from a ten-a-penny TV movie with creative budgeting and the regular storyline of boy meets girl at the most wonderful time of year. And the woman looks fit to be a leading lady, perhaps a bit clumsy and scatterbrained but it only makes her kindhearted nature more endearing. Probably. Sangyeon doesn't know her at all and he might never know her, even through a tenuous link like a soulmate of a friend discovered during a meet-cute. 

Sangyeon won't get to see the scene through to the end because his number is called and he needs to join the pseudo-queue forming for fulfilled orders. 

If Sangyeon stretches onto tiptoe, he can see the Nintendo Switch waiting on a shelf behind the counter. He'd been too distracted to see it appear on the conveyor-belt from the mysterious depths of the warehouse but that doesn't matter so much when he still needs to queue up and wait for the other orders before him to get their goodies. 

"How could you just abandon me like that?" Jaehyun asks. He drives an elbow right between Sangyeon's ribs for good measure and it is not well appreciated. Sangyeon clamps his arms against his sides in protection and chances stepping back into line even if it is closer to Jaehyun and his elbows. 

"I didn't abandon you. Our number got called."

"And you just left me. What kind of idiot am I going to look like if I am talking to you and some stranger needs to point out that you walked away like you don't know me?" Jaehyun asks. He clearly isn't looking for an answer because Sangyeon’s attempt to give one is met with a steely glare. Sangyeon keeps his mouth shut and Jaehyun sighs. "I don't envy her though, you know, that girl."

"Why not? Shouldn't you still be over there swapping numbers and getting to know her enough that you do envy the fact that she hasn't accidentally adopted three kids?" Sangyeon jibes. 

"Hey, it was no accident," Jaehyun says solemnly, "We knew what we were getting into when we became parents. She has some sort of similar problem anyway. She has way too many people to buy presents for. I don't even think I know eleven people, do you? I am buying four presents and that's it."

Jaehyun sounds very certain about that and Sangyeon can't help himself. He begins to count on his fingers for emphasis when he says, "Does that mean you aren't getting me a present? I bought you one seeing as I needed to thank you for helping to look after the kids. Are you saying you didn't get me anything?" 

"No!" Jaehyun gapes, dumb, drowning in the stuffy air of the queue without a way to dive back into the flow of customers which might take him out of the shop. He swallows and doesn't even try to smile. "I got you something too. Five presents."

"Really? Maybe we should exchange gifts soon seeing as we're both so prepared. It would be better to do it before the office party, don't you agree?" 

Jaehyun grits his teeth into a grimace which could never be mistaken for a smile. "I just remembered I had to give your present away to charity or something. You'll have to do the same with mine."

As excuses go it is a shoddy one. And as he shuffles forward in the queue, one step closer to the gift they came here for, Sangyeon thinks he quite likes having Jaehyun on the back foot like this. 


	6. Snowball Fight

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Snowfall means war

Sunwoo's complexion flushes, histamine cerise from a combination of rising rage and the fuchsia impact of the snowball which fragmented on his face. Eric, because he is young and foolish, laughs heartily at hitting his target so well. Hyunjun at least has the desire to live and presses his laugh into Sangyeon’s shoulder. He's trembling from his stifled snickering and Sangyeon isn't sure how much longer he can protect Hyunjun with something as weak as a hug. 

Eric is still laughing even when Jaehyun beckons him over to the path and makes shushing gestures. Jaehyun's assistance goes unheeded and Sangyeon holds Hyunjun against his side more tightly. 

"Be quiet," Sangyeon hisses to Hyunjun. He wills the wobble out of his face and raises his voice to the other to say, "Maybe we shouldn't do this at lunchtime. You don't want to spend the rest of the day damp." 

"He should have thought about that before," Sunwoo says, launching himself at Eric. No amount of Jaehyun yelling warnings can stop the two of them going flying into a snow drift in the courtyard with a dull whump. 

"What are you two idiots doing?" Jaehyun shouts as he jogs to dig the pair of them out of the snow. He's not particularly successful, in part due to Sunwoo flailing his limbs and splashing sprays of powdery snow into the air and Eric howling with laughter even as Jaehyun tries to tug him out of his ditch. 

"They're going to be so cold," Hyunjun says, almost wistfully. He winces at a gust of wind and huddles closer into Sangyeon’s hold. He grins down at Sangyeon, the clip of his canines make his joy look kittenish and Sangyeon knows the importance of holding Hyunjun closer. And just like he knows Sangyeon’s intentions to prevent him from freezing he leans closer. "They'll be so jealous. At least I won't be cold."

"Never," Sangyeon agrees. He wonders whether this is how his favouritism manifests. He wants to keep Hyunjun wrapped up warm forever, but anyone else would be shoved into a pile of snow just for a laugh. It probably isn't worth thinking about. He pinches Hyunjun’s cheek and wonders just how soft he looks as he watches the laugh which huffs out of Hyunjun’s mouth as easily as condensation. 

Sangyeon glances over at Jaehyun and sees him continuing to struggle to dig Eric out of the snow whilst keeping Sunwoo a fair distance away. Sangyeon decides he'd rather not watch and looks back to Hyunjun and the hesitant expression there. Being warm all the time might not be so healthy. 

"Say no if you don't want to do it," Sangyeon begins carefully, "But I think Jaehyun needs our help."

Hyunjun chews his lower lip and frowns. "He wouldn't help you, you know. I'd have to try and stop him from turning you into a snowman. I am only fifty percent sure he'd stop instead of turning me into a snowman too."

"So half of your mind thinks Jaehyun would shove you in the snow?" Sangyeon muses. "We can't have that. Let's go and help."

Maybe Sangyeon has been waiting for an opportunity like this for too long - his absentminded moments at his desk this winter have too often been fantasies about smushing Jaehyun's face into the snow - and the opportunity to make those thoughts reality has arisen. 

Except Jaehyun hears Sangyeon coming and leaves Eric to the mercy of Sunwoo finally getting at him through compacted snow. Jaehyun is quick and dodges Sangyeon’s initial charge but loses his footing too quickly to be smug about it. He still manages to drag Sangyeon down with him to soften the impact.

"What are you playing at?" Jaehyun asks. He's not quite glaring down at Sangyeon but the sense of the expression has enough presence that Sangyeon pretends to feel cowed. Not that it is enough to have him answer quickly. Not quicker than Hyunjun, anyway. 

"Helping!" Hyunjun declares as he kicks waves of snow over the lot of them. 

Jaehyun huddles closer, shielding Sangyeon from Hyunjun’s snowfall more than he really needs to, and even sweeps the melting flakes from Sangyeon’s face with the blade of his hand. 

And then the disturbed flurries cease and the snow that shoots above is more carefully compacted as Hyunjun pelts everyone with snowballs. 

"Hey, that's dangerous!" Jaehyun calls over his shoulder. "There could be stones or glass or anything that could end up in your snowballs and injure us."

"I'll take that chance!" is Hyunjun’s bolshy response. He doesn't sound any less bolshy at returned fire from Sunwoo and Jaehyun hangs his head in exasperation. 

"Aren't you going to try to stop him?" 

"No."

Jaehyun sighs and prods Sangyeon in the forehead. "You're the one who tried to warn everyone about staying dry. Just because it's Hyunjun you shouldn't turn a blind eye." 

Sangyeon grins. Jaehyun doesn't have a leg to stand on because he is just as bad, if not worse, and he can't deny it when Sangyeon points it out. 

Jaehyun huffs, preoccupied with a snowflake which isn't moving no matter how he tries to sweep it away - it apparently isn't melting either and Jaehyun keeps stroking at Sangyeon’s cheek with a vague determination. And that's why it is so easy for Sangyeon to push a handful of snow in Jaehyun's face. 

Sangyeon is happy enough to hear the jeering from the kids. He deserves all the snow which comes back at him in retaliation and it still feels like a good decision when their half hour lunch is over and his trousers are sticking to his legs because of the melted snow. 


	7. Ugly Sweater

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The best time to wear an ugly sweater is all the time~

Hyunjun trudges into the office because he is the good sort of kid who would never refuse Sangyeon a favour. 

Jaehyun gasps loudly enough for even the most conscientious of workers in the office to mute their phonecalls and crane their necks to look away from their computers. 

"You look so handsome in that jumper," Jaehyun says solemnly. 

Hyunjun casts a disparaging glare in Jaehyun's direction before making a bee-line for Sangyeon. He crouches at Sangyeon’s chair and pouts. He is cute as well as handsome, so Sangyeon can confirm he and Jaehyun made a good decision picking out ugly Christmas jumpers for the kids. 

Sunwoo already barged into the office proudly and demanded Eric accompany him on an excursion to buy treats at the corner shop across the street (the trip is also to show off their ugly Christmas jumpers. Hyunjun’s absence from the errand appears not to be an accident). 

"Why did you do this to me?" Hyunjun grumbles. "Nobody in my department is wearing anything like this."

Sangyeon wouldn't have been able to guess that Hyunjun would have quite this level of resistance to the ugly jumper. Jaehyun had been excited about thinking up such a great family activity and volunteered himself to hide the fairisle jumpers (beautifully hideous jumpers embellished with bells and detachable garlands) for the kids to find when they arrived at work. 

"You can take it off if you hate it," Sangyeon offers. "We'll just ask you to wear it for our group picture. I will take care of breaking the news to Jaehyun." 

Jaehyun is going to be very disappointed. He had said he came up with a great idea for everyone to feel included even if they didn't all work in the same office, but it can't be helped if Hyunjun is embarrassed by it. 

Hyunjun tugs at the trunk of his jumper and inspects it before looking up at Sangyeon and dragging the collar away from his neck. "This isn't about hating the jumper. It is giving me an allergic reaction! This is life or death!" 

Hyunjun points to the turnip splotches of violent fuchsia that have risen around his neck. He's right. This is life or death. 

Sangyeon drags Hyunjun up from the floor and doesn't even lock his computer on his way out of the office. 

"Where are you going?" Jaehyun asks loudly. If Sangyeon didn't know any better he'd think Jaehyun was trying to get him into trouble. Then again Sangyeon can't guarantee that Jaehyun knows better, not when he is equally guilty of taking Hyunjun out for no good reason during work hours. 

Sangyeon doesn't have time to explain to the likes of Jaehyun, and he isn't entirely bothered about clearing up any misunderstandings. He needs to get Hyunjun to a hospital or even directly to the nearest dermatologist at the very least. 

But Sangyeon is barely able to find his car to take Hyunjun anywhere. He's at a loss as he looks over the car park. 

"Sangyeon, are you alright?" Hyunjun asks. He wriggles his arm to get Sangyeon to look at him, at how tightly he is holding onto Hyunjun’s wrist, at how Hyunjun genuinely looks more concerned about Sangyeon than the fact that his skin has erupted into a rash. 

"I'm fine," Sangyeon says in a totally fine voice. He takes a step closer to Hyunjun instead of standing far enough to pull his arm from his socket. The snow crunches beneath his shoes and he tries not to flinch too visibly. He smiles. "See. I'm fine. You're not fine though."

Hyunjun scratches his neck through the weave of his jumper and gestures vaguely to the other side of the car park. "I think your car is over there. You don't need to take me anywhere. I can just take this off."

That sounds sensible. Sangyeon still feels like tearing his hair out. "Do you think they have antihistamines across the road? We can go to a real pharmacy if they don't."

"Why are you stressing out like this?" Hyunjun asks of Sangyeon’s insistence. "I'm fine. I'm just allergic to cheap things apparently."

Sangyeon should have been able to guess something like that. All the jokes about how Hyunjun was genetically predisposed to have expensive taste sounded far closer to truth than fiction at the time and Sangyeon feels like a fool for not even considering that cheap polyester blends could be as inflammatory as they were cost effective. 

"I'm sorry, Hyunjun."

"You're really being silly," Hyunjun points out. "You should be more relaxed at this time of year. We're meant to be having fun and you're meant to be happy about buying me things."

It is just cheeky enough that Sangyeon can't help but laugh. It is such a silly thing to say and it almost sounds like it could be serious, especially when Sangyeon is serious about buying lots of things for Hyunjun (whatever he looks at with the right sort of interest ignited in his eyes). 

Hyunjun is probably right that Sangyeon should relax more. Sangyeon smiles, and he says, "I'll get you another jumper to wear later. An expensive one that won't burn all the skin off your body."

Hyunjun’s face is triumphant at Sangyeon’s promise and he hugs Sangyeon to his side. He still does free up one arm to scratch at the rosy ring visible over the collar of his jumper. 


	8. First Kiss

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A first kiss.

There's a certain shine in Jaehyun's eyes which even glares through the bleary layer of inebriation. Having something like department mandated nights out drinking after work doesn't do anything to help Sangyeon obfuscate his own desires when he sees this shine linger on him. 

Jaehyun is something of a partner-in-crime and Sangyeon wants nothing more than to be able to keep Jaehyun in that capacity, to grasp onto the feeling of the two of them being up against the other departments when they need to bring up issues in meetings or anything as small as the vicious Christmas crowds. 

Of course there is always something else there and, try as he might, Sangyeon can't shake the need to be the one who Jaehyun likes best. He wants to be the one Jaehyun looks to when he needs to split his happiness. He wants to be The Only. 

When Sangyeon’s had a skinful, and Jaehyun has spent ten minutes inviting people to mock Sangyeon for gifting him with a couple's massage last September, it is vanity that wins out over any pretence of sense. 

Because they're on the look-out for taxis to come to collect Rachel and Little Yena they're outside where the wind is and they need to stand a bit too close in their hope for warmth. Because they're standing so close together Sangyeon can pretend he sees that shine in Jaehyun's eyes reflecting from the streetlights and fairylights and shop signs. Because Sangyeon wants to see something that might only be for him he grips at Jaehyun's sleeve to pull him closer still. And then Sangyeon kisses Jaehyun. 

The problem with the kiss is that Jaehyun doesn't even act like he is surprised about it. He kisses back like he has been waiting since he told the story of his most ridiculous birthday present for the umpteenth time, since the last time he hesitated just a breath too long in the passenger seat of Sangyeon’s car after a lift home, since he took a moment in chaos to study Sangyeon’s face, since the first time they made up an excuse to hold hands, since they their running joke about being parents sounded like it carried sincerity. 

Sangyeon pulls away and Jaehyun laughs. Even if the kiss had felt like something Sangyeon can't count on hoping that Jaehyun really had been waiting. The projection of feelings is a dangerous thing but Sangyeon doesn't quite feel this was entirely his own fault. What else could he have done with all the conspiratorial nudges and winks as Jaehyun called him dear and complained about them having three mouths to feed? Sangyeon couldn't quite shake them off and the only other option was to feel. 

Even now Sangyeon is doomed to feel; the biting air and the prickling warm effervescing up his neck in chagrined spurts, the mistiness of breath condensing before his eyes, the casual grip of Jaehyun’s fingers around his even when turning over to wave over Rachel and Little Yena where they are huddled together in the doorway for warmth. 

Jaehyun turns back to Sangyeon, just for a moment before dragging him over to the taxi to cover the cost of the fare so the girls won't need to worry. The glance is enough and the shape of his laugh is burning into the shadows of each time Sangyeon blinks. There's something carefree in the scattered line of Jaehyun’s smile and Sangyeon wishes he could grip happiness in the gap between the irregular rows of teeth the way Jaehyun does. 

But Sangyeon closes his mouth, keeps his teeth tightly shut against words that might shatter the laugh stopping the seal of Jaehyun’s jaws. They're still holding hands and Sangyeon is struggling to even maintain his grasp on this much. He wants to keep this moment and he wants to pretend that this is his natural state with Jaehyun and he helps Little Yena walk in a straightish line to the taxi while Rachel follows along at a marginally more stable pace. 

They wave off the taxi with the girls in the back seat and Sangyeon only hopes they'll have the sense to remember that they should send a text when they get home. But there is still enough time before then that Sangyeon will be confronted with the fact that he kissed Jaehyun for no good reason. 

They're still holding hands, not that this connection will do much for Sangyeon’s nerves. 

"We should get going too," Jaehyun says, offhand. "Do you want to share a cab?" 

"Yeah, that's fine."

They're still linked by the hands, their fingers hooked lightly enough that Jaehyun simply might not even realise that they're still touching. Sangyeon keeps glancing down at their hands while he phones for the taxi. He can see their hands and he can feel the absent pressure of Jaehyun’s fingers but they shouldn't still be holding hands — not after the kiss, not after the laugh. 

"Apparently it will be fifteen minutes," Sangyeon says when he hangs up the phone. Jaehyun's fingers tighten briefly around Sangyeon’s and his expression looks wobbly in the strangest of ways. So Sangyeon needs to ask what is wrong. 

"Nothing," Jaehyun says quickly. He smiles, closed-lipped, careful, beautiful in the dim hours of artifice. 

"It won't be too long to wait."

"You're right," Jaehyun agrees. "It will fly by. And then we'll be back at work bright and early tomorrow."

They will be and Sangyeon isn't even going to mind the throbbing ache of his brain to remind him of the night before the morning after. 


	9. Snowed In

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Heavy snowfall means that Sangyeon and Jaehyun are conveniently snowed in.

Sangyeon sent everyone else home an hour into the work day. He and Jaehyun had weighed the pros and cons of making people go home after making the effort to come in, but the snow (which had been so beautiful and entrancing almost two weeks ago) wasn't letting up. Even now, the flurries had thickened and reports on the radio and on the internet warn of treacherous driving conditions. 

There is no use in being mad at Jaehyun for suggesting they stick behind to man the phone lines and pass along information about rescheduled sessions for social activities and adult learning programmes alike. Jaehyun couldn't have predicted the snow locking their office building in drifts, and if Sangyeon was in the right he would have refused and made sure they both went safely home too. But Sangyeon hadn't stuck with any such refusal so they were stuck at work with only each other for company. 

The seclusion might not have been so bad if the kiss had never happened. A normal person might have been able to pretend away the fact it had happened, even as recent as it was, by not forcing themselves into a situation alone with the person they had kissed. Sangyeon blames the festivity in the air - the smog of mulled wine being warmed and ready for brave drinkers is enough to make the sharpest of minds foggy and dull. And Sangyeon is at least sharp enough to realise he can't pretend to reply to emails for much longer. 

"Who are you doing that for?" Jaehyun eventually asks. All I want for Christmas is You has finished playing on the radio for the sixth time that day and Jaehyun has turned down the volume of the chatty banter before the next track as he always does. He shuffles his chair over to Sangyeon’s desk and rotates slowly to a stop. The look he is giving Sangyeon seems serious. 

They've kissed. And right now there's nobody around to care if they ever did it again. Jaehyun excluded. 

"I don't want there to be too much for the team to come in to tackle tomorrow," Sangyeon reasons. Jaehyun scoffs. 

"Who cares? They'd manage anyway. They're a good team. And there's nobody else here to impress. They won't know what you've done for them." 

Things sound insignificant when Jaehyun says it like that, slumped in his chair like he could doze off at any moment, but Sangyeon has another purpose for once. His current methods to avoid directly interacting with Jaehyun are failing. Things are never that easy. 

"It's better than doing nothing," Sangyeon says. "We've seen the snow and how it has blocked up all the exits. We'll be here for hours and I don't intend to twiddle my thumbs the entire time."

Jaehyun rolls his eyes and sits forward in his seat. "Listen, there are so many things that we could be doing instead of work."

Sangyeon isn't sure he should be so easily led into asking but Jaehyun could make him ask anything. Jaehyun could make Sangyeon do anything. 

They're at one end of a long and deserted corridor. The far end is dark, not quite touched by the lights which spill out of the ceiling when the motion sensors activate. There is something eerie about looking through the blinking amber at the border between light and dark. But isn't so bad with Jaehyun beside him. 

"Are you ready?" 

Sangyeon probably isn't ready but he nods to see Jaehyun grin. They're in this together, bored and confined and racing their desk chairs is good as any activity. 

"Three, two, one—" 

"Hold on," Sangyeon interrupts, "If you're the one counting doesn't that give you an advantage?" 

Jaehyun huffs. "There's nobody else. What do you think we should do? Count together?" 

Counting together sounds like a terrible idea but Sangyeon gets Jaehyun to agree to it. He's more surprised than anything that Jaehyun doesn't shove the rival chair right into the wall when they finish the countdown. Instead it is a fair race. 

Sangyeon wishes he'd practiced manoeuvring around the office without getting out of his chair but he hadn't anticipated a race like this in his life. Running is easy but sitting down and trying with all his might to get this chair in front of Jaehyun’s is the real challenge. And then Sangyeon is approaching the dark end of the corridor and it feels like he's a victor when he's doused in light by his lead and then his trundling hits something of a snag and he tips right out of his chair mere metres from the security doors on their floor. 

Sangyeon does not get any sympathy.

"I love the way you're rolling around in that corner the cleaners sweep all the dust into," Jaehyun says brightly, a sore winner remembering to snap pictures just for the sake of prosperity. Bragging rights are worth way more than Sangyeon would admit. 

Sangyeon pulls himself up using Jaehyun's arm. The contact is the first direct instance since the oddness of the night when they kissed. But it almost feels like normal. They're just like they always have been and there's no temptation that Sangyeon would succumb to at a time like this. 

"Do you want to go again?" Sangyeon asks. "Double or nothing." 

There isn't really even a wager but Jaehyun grins, latching onto the words with the kind of vivacity afforded by adrenaline. And even if Jaehyun wins three more times after that, he only gloats about it when calling the kids for fifteen minutes. 

Sangyeon can handle fifteen minutes (per child) he decides as he and Jaehyun break into the stash of treats that had been hidden away in advance of the office party the following Monday. 


	10. Chocolate

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Sangyeon and Jaehyun are rescued

"Hey, what's this?" Eric says as he leans over the wall of the fort Sangyeon and Jaehyun improvised from boxes of printer paper. (The floor of the fort is a mattress tessellated by reams of paper which might actually have been less comfortable than the floor but both Sangyeon and Jaehyun were committed enough to their creation last night that they had to deal with bad backs come the morning). 

When Eric stands up he's holding a slip of jewel-toned cellophane folded around similarly bright foil. Eric needn't have asked. It is fairly obvious what he had found. But Sunwoo sees fit to pluck it from between Eric's fingers. Sunwoo inspects it and beckons Hyunjun, Jacob and Eric closer to announce, "It's a chocolate wrapper."

"Hey, is that from one of our department gifts?" Eric asks. He darts to the drawer Sangyeon left unlocked to scan the contents but he shouldn't know whether anything is missing just from looking as he wouldn't have looked into the drawer before. He heads to the desk at the back of the office and wails. So the two tubs of empty chocolate wrappers have been discovered. "You ate two whole tubs of chocolates? And they're not even the rubbish ones, these are the ones everyone was looking forward to eating at the office party!" 

Jaehyun sits up and rubs at the back of his neck. He hasn't said anything much since the cavalry came to rescue them. They're lucky that after such heavy snowfall the company could arrange for the maintenance team to fix the failsafes which jammed the doors which had frozen shut. They were lucky so Jaehyun shouldn't have been on the brink of glowering at the fact that Jacob had brought the kids to pick them up. But eating a kilogram of chocolate the night before might just have given Jaehyun a headache as bad as the one Sangyeon has. 

"We thought last night was our last night on earth," Sangyeon jokes. "Are you really going to be mad that we had chocolate as our last supper?" 

"You weren't even close to death," Sunwoo points out. "I don't think that anybody else would eat chocolate and build a little house out of boxes of paper if they thought it was the last thing they'd ever do."

Jacob laughs. "What would you do then to leave your mark?" 

"I wouldn't need to leave my mark. I would have smashed the window and made myself insulation out of scrunched up paper and hiked through the snow and lived to tell the tale."

"Ooh that's impressive," Jacob grins. "I'd tell everyone about your story."

"Nobody is going to tell your story though." 

Sunwoo tenses and pulls a face until he realises Hyunjun was talking to Sangyeon and Jaehyun. He laughs and looks very smug as he peers into the fort. Sangyeon reasons it is fine as long as Sunwoo feels better about his legacy living on longer than theirs. 

"You'd all just tell it wrong," Jaehyun grouches. He stands up, groaning as his joints crack and his cursory stretches of his neck aren't doing him any favours. "We're sworn enemies; a handsome hero and the villain, who is in love with him, and the night we spent trapped together showed us that we could work as a team to survive. It would make a great catalyst for an enemies to friends to lovers storyline."

"I don't want to hear about the two of you as lovers," Eric grumbles. He even raises his hands like he is ready to cover up his ears at the first sign of trouble. He's a funny kid even if he is clearly still sulking over chocolate. 

"You won't hear about anything about lovers," Sangyeon laughs as he squeezes Eric gently. "I'll buy the chocolates back so nobody will even know that they were eaten. Is that better?" 

"It's the principle. You're ruining Christmas by eating the presents."

Eric is allowed to be stubborn like this but Sangyeon at least wants some reinforcement at a time like. Jaehyun isn't the best help though. He averts his eyes when he sees Sangyeon trying to communicate his plea and that's as good an answer as any. 

They're a world away from messing around together just because there were infinite ways to enjoy each other's presence, and as certainly as Jaehyun's pitch for a story wouldn't see the light of day, they're not the friends they could be. They're not even the friends they were before. 

The distance Jaehyun is maintaining must be noticeable to the others but Sangyeon isn't going to say anything. He is bothered by Jaehyun busying himself with insignificant tasks that do nothing to help tidy away the stacks of paper and the makeshift home they'd built for themselves. 

The absence of a body tucked against Sangyeon’s chest shouldn't have him feeling so chilled but that doesn't change the fact that Sangyeon is still missing something that had kept him warm during their winter holiday


	11. Hates Cold

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Sangyeon hates the cold

Disliking cold is nature. It is understandable that the faculties of a person's body chilling away from a person's extremities would be incentive enough to avoid the cold. 

Sangyeon hates the cold too and he thinks he put up with it long enough the night he was trapped at work without the toasty comfort of his bed. But Jaehyun says they should go out somewhere to meet a few friends and he claims that once they've arrived they'll be surrounded by warmth so there's no reason to refuse. 

"You look like the Michelin man," is the first thing Jaehyun says when Sangyeon arrives at the pub. Sangyeon looks this way because he's been feeling the cold more and more as time went on and it isn't an exaggeration to say that two scarves are necessary. The strangest thing is that Jaehyun isn't even laughing, but maybe anybody who is as dedicated to a fashion first approach would look equally as annoyed as Jaehyun does. That being said, Sangyeon knows that Hyunjun values style above all else and has never been so exasperated with the way he dresses. So Jaehyun must simply be looking for excuses to glare disparagingly. 

"How many coats are you wearing?" Big Jinsol asks. She juts her jaw out like a challenge, like she is ready with an arsenal of witty retorts for whatever Sangyeon can say. But Sangyeon probably isn't the right kind of funny for that and he's mostly wondering how he could have missed Jaehyun telling him they were meeting 'other people' of this calibre. 

Big Jinsol is, in a word, gorgeous. Even now in the dingy back corner of a pub that couldn't work out a good lighting solution, Jinsol has sharp eyes and a smile which runs flat at its summit to collect spare joy. 

Of course Sangyeon is more used to seeing the way she looks when she complains about the state of admin in other departments after handing across painstakingly collated files. Most often Sangyeon has heard Jinsol complain about how incompetent the enrollment department is. He hadn't imagined she'd choose to spend time with the very department she complains about most often. 

But the woman sitting beside Jinsol at the table might have somehow forced this with Jaehyun. Jaehyun actually looks like he has just now considered that a surprise like this might be weird. Even if Sangyeon doesn't want to admit it, the surprise is weird. It was only a week ago that Jaehyun had a terribly cliché and clumsy first meeting with the woman sitting beside Jinsol. And now she's even smiling at Sangyeon like she knows him. 

"How are you after being trapped at work?" The woman asks, a small smile tugging the corners of her mouth against her will. "Jaehyun said it wasn't that bad but Jinsol said she wouldn't wish it on anyone."

Sangyeon removes his coat but keeps his jacket on. The journey here was frigid enough that he needs the time to thaw out. He shrugs and pretends he isn't close to shivering. "It wasn't bad. We didn't freeze or starve."

"Mentally it sounds like too much trouble," Jinsol says. "I suppose I wouldn't mind if I was trapped with Haseul though. It could be almost romantic, being together and only being able to rely on each other for survival. Huddling together for warmth, and taking turns to keep watch for predators. Those sorts of things add a bit of a thrill."

"We were indoors with central heating and running water," Sangyeon points out. The same is true right now but Sangyeon is loath to remove his coats when unwinding one scarf has made him vulnerable to the arctic draught blowing through the pub. 

"What about the romance?" Jinsol prompts. Sangyeon glances at Jaehyun's careful neutrality and offers a smile. 

"What sort of romance are you expecting at work?" 

Jinsol sighs. "Nothing exciting ever happens at work. I want something big to shake things up and give us all something to gossip about. You know, for morale. My team certainly need something to cheer them all up."

"Have you tried locking them up in your office overnight?" Sangyeon suggests. Jinsol rolls her eyes and Haseul chuckles into her hand. 

Sangyeon buys the table a round of drinks when he notices how empty the glasses already on the table have become. When he returns, Haseul is emphatically nodding at Jaehyun and getting very worked up about something. One wide gesture almost knocks over two of the drinks and Haseul only pauses for a moment before she continues on. Jinsol is watching Haseul with a gentle smile so Sangyeon can't ask her for context but he catches on quicker than he expects. 

It helps that Haseul turns to Sangyeon very seriously and says, "You shouldn't punish yourself if your kids are upset about you going on a couples' holiday without them."

Sangyeon smiles awkwardly. He has missed a lot. 

"It was only a long weekend," Sangyeon says, stiff. "Would the kids even be jealous about the massages? Jaehyun makes it very clear he hated the whole thing." 

"Don't tell them anyway," Haseul warns. "They will only get upset if they find out you're leaving them behind."

The advice sounds sage and Sangyeon nods seriously. Haseul smiles at Sangyeon and it thaws the discomfort lodged in Sangyeon’s chest. He glances at Jaehyun and sees a man he is less certain of. Jaehyun still smiles the same and is always there whenever Sangyeon needs information or a perspective, but he doesn't think he likes sitting so close to him whilst enduring the cold alone.


	12. Work Party

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> It is time for the office christmas party

It is after everyone has come back from their staggered lunchtimes that the office secret santa gifts are exchanged. 

After a morning of ruthlessly stealing away the chocolates and wines gifted by businesses who liaise with them to set up on-the-job training qualifications, sitting in a circle in the middle of the office is quite the achievement. Naeun is the hardest one to convince to sit down so that they can start the exchange but she is still yelling about the hoard of goodies she has amassed through theft. 

It is Chaewon (Chaewon One when mentioned outside of this office, and formerly known as Big Chaewon before the third and littlest Chaewon joined the foundation learning team on the floor below) who puts a stop to Naeun's disagreeable behaviour. "Sit down before I confiscate all of that and your present."

Naeun pouts and grumbles as she drags her chair over to sit beside Jinsol (Formerly the only Jinsol but now referred to as Little Jinsol despite being taller than big Jinsol who works on the floor below) but the fate of her gift is at risk and that is far more exciting than tins of chocolates swiped from her colleagues. There is intrigue surrounding the Secret Santa and the Christmas crooning on the radio is turned down as Jaehyun places the last gift in the centre of the circle. 

The pile of presents looks quite scruffy and Sangyeon supposes it makes sense that nobody is any good at wrapping presents. He's more pleased than anything that his gift isn't the worst based on external appearance. He can't vouch for its quality compared to the other actual gifts. He isn't as confident as he would like but Jaehyun had assured him it was a good gift. 

Jaehyun clears his throat. "Let's start giving out the gifts. Remember that if your gift is obviously below the minimum spend or if your recipient doesn't like what you've given them you'll have to pick a forfeit." The Halloween sweets bucket filled with folded forfeits is held aloft for everyone to see. Nobody looks too bothered about having to draw a forfeit but Sangyeon had seen Jaehyun spend long enough thinking up forfeits this morning that he hopes at least one person will have to take a punishment. 

"What if your recipient hates your gift?" Big Yena asks. "I think you'll pick an easy forfeit, right?" 

"I don't need to worry about that," Jaehyun says. "My gift is the best one of all. New rule: everyone except for the best santa will have to take a forfeit."

"Yours is the smallest," Big Yena points out. "That means it is definitely the worst."

Jaehyun stumbles over his retort but manages to say, "It's Secret Santa. Saying you know which one I put in the pile is a big lie."

There's protests from everyone around the circle and Sangyeon supposes he agrees. Jaehyun wasn't subtle at all when adding his gift to the pile. 

"Can I pick a present to give?" Naeun asks. She doesn't wait for a response of the affirmative, or she decides she doesn't need one, and picks the largest present. "It says it is for Yena but it doesn't specify which one."

"It is probably for Little Yena," Eric says. 

"Oooh," Naeun coos as he pushes past Jaehyun to reach Little Yena and place the box on her lap. "What do you think it is? It wasn't heavy."

"Stop trying to ruin my present," Yena says as she pushes Naeun away. But Naeun returns to crouch right in front of Yena, waiting for the unboxing to begin. When the present is revealed Naeun huffs and sits in her empty seat. Little Yena can't take her eyes off the stuffed unicorn lolling out of the box it came in. 

"Will Eric have to do the forfeit now or do we wait for everyone to see how disappointed they should feel and make everyone pick at the end?" Big Yena asks. 

"Eric won't have to pick a forfeit," Jaehyun says quickly as he hides the bucket behind his back. "We don't even know Eric bought this."

"I bought it," Eric admits. 

"Pick a forfeit," Little Yena instructs, tone clipped. Eric dutifully trots over to Jaehyun to take a slip of paper from the bucket. 

"I won't read it until the end," Eric promises 

"Let me choose the next one," Naeun says, just as eager to assist as the first time. But the first thing she picks up gets flung over her shoulder. 

"That's a present!" Jaehyun says as he jumps up from his seat and retrieves the silver envelope. He hands it to Sangyeon and sits down with a sulky expression. 

Sangyeon turns the envelope over and it certainly is his name on the front of it. "So it is my turn?" 

"Was that a present?" Naeun asks as she continues to weigh up the next choice. 

Sangyeon decides his turn should go by quickly so that the others can check over their presents and have their fun. Sangyeon opens the envelope. Inside is a plain card with the words _'Two Tickets to Wherever.'_

"What does this mean?" Sangyeon asks Jaehyun. 

"Why are you asking me?" 

"This looks like something you'd do to make fun of the couples massage thing."

"So you're finally admitting that it was a couples massage and not two massages?" Jaehyun grins. Sangyeon sighs but Jaehyun doesn't elaborate until after he checks the remainder of the circle are distracted by Naeun's choice. "It isn't me making fun. It's a real present. But obviously I don't know your passport number so I couldn't buy the tickets already. And I want you to choose where we go."

Sangyeon looks down at the card and then back up at Jaehyun. "I don't understand. Like… Is this a trip for the two of us?" 

Jaehyun exhales through his nose and leans closer to Sangyeon. "Just pretend it is whatever in front of everyone else. But if you don't want to have that gift I will find you something else."

"No. You can't take it back," Sangyeon says. "We'll go somewhere together on this couples trip you're going to organise."

Sangyeon thinks he's lucky that Naeun is busy screaming about getting a designer bag from Chaewon One so that he's the only one who sees the way Jaehyun laughs at that. 


	13. Starry Night

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The gang go stargazing

Sangyeon is glad he remembered to bring flasks of soup and tea but he is less glad about the fact he didn't have the foresight to label them. He also sticks to using his complete ignorance of the flask contents to not admit to Jaehyun that not one of them contains the coffee he'd specifically requested. 

"It's not in this one either," Jaehyun says after unscrewing a cap and taking a whiff of the liquid inside to be helpful. It shouldn't even matter because they're going back to Jaehyun's place afterwards and he definitely has plenty of the coffee he likes at home. He'd only have to wait half an hour to an hour to drink any coffee, but Sangyeon doesn't really want to bring that up just yet. 

They're supposed to be doing something a bit chilled and relaxed with the kids, except neither Sangyeon nor Jaehyun knows anything substantial about stargazing and Sunwoo armed with the app he downloaded on the way to this hilltop away from city lights have already refuted a lot of the claims Jaehyun had made about the stars in the sky. 

"Are you two done yet?" Eric calls over from the flimsy telescope Jaehyun had borrowed from a friend. 

"We'll be right there," Jaehyun calls back over his shoulder. He squats back down beside Sangyeon and recaps the flask with his voice dropping as he continues. "Don't break anything or I'll have to pay with my life. Sangyeon, haven't we checked all of these weird flasks by now? Did you really bring my coffee?" 

Sangyeon weighs up the flasks in front of him and then considers that being honest now might work out better in the long run. 

"I must not have. Sorry."

"You said you brought it," Jaehyun says with a sniff. He leans closer to Sangyeon and extracts a flask from Sangyeon’s grip. "Is this one yours? You'll have to share with me so I don't freeze to death."

"You won't freeze when we're hardly going to stay out here for long," Sangyeon points out. 

"I'll freeze. I'll die and it will be all your fault."

"How about now?" Sangyeon asks as he envelops Jaehyun in his arms and squeezes him too tight. They tip over. Falling onto the winter-solid ground makes Sangyeon sure his blood turned glacier cold even as he asks, "Will you freeze like this?" 

Jaehyun's voice is muffled against Sangyeon’s shoulder but he doesn't bother to struggle as much as he could. "I might not freeze but I could still die. You won't get your Christmas present if you kill me."

Sangyeon barely loosens his grip but Jaehyun leans more heavily against him like it is what he had intended all along. Sangyeon would appreciate it a fraction more if they could be somewhere cosier than the hard December ground. Even being on the singular picnic blanket the five of them have between them might have been more comfortable than this. Being crushed into the frozen floor by Jaehyun's intentionally deadweight isn't the most ideal outcome for this trip. 

"This is quite a hefty price to pay for a present," Sangyeon says. Jaehyun twists in Sangyeon’s grip and frowns. 

"Are you saying that letting me live isn't worth the present I bought you?" 

"You technically haven't bought it yet," Sangyeon says. Not that it matters. Not that it is even marginally related to his initial point. It is still enough to make Jaehyun's expression shutter but only for a moment. The corner of his mouth twitches and Sangyeon wonders what sort of circumstances might allow him to kiss the involuntary tell into a full-blown smile. But he shouldn't even think about kissing Jaehyun right now. 

Sangyeon isn't confident that he is allowed to do anything like kiss Jaehyun. After the first time they kissed Sangyeon has been intentionally avoiding the subject, though he hasn't had to work very hard seeing as Jaehyun hasn't ever brought it up. 

They kissed over a week ago and they'd both been drinking so they have a convenient excuse to deny it meant anything if anybody mentions it.

(In fact Rachel did mention it at the office Christmas party after informing Sangyeon that nobody else knew what Jaehyun's gift to Sangyeon was. She'd asked if it was expensive, if it was a really good present seeing as her two departmental managers liked each other so much. She said she had seen them kiss. And Sangyeon had swallowed roughly against the abrasive dry of his throat and told her that the present was more a notification of a future present than anything else. He told her that the kiss was in the heat of the moment and he and Jaehyun liked each other the normal co-manager amount. Rachel reminded Sangyeon about the infamous couple's massage before darting away to rescue her colleagues from Little Yena using the cuddly unicorn from Eric as a bludgeon).

They've kissed, and they've held hands more times than Sangyeon can remember, and they've spent an uncomfortable night sleeping on a makeshift bed of A4 paper whilst huddling together as close as can be, and Jaehyun has introduced Sangyeon to a complete stranger as his co-parent with no context whatsoever, and Jaehyun has invited Sangyeon on a trip together - just the two of them - and it is too much to think about. 

Jaehyun is funny. Jaehyun makes everyone laugh. Jaehyun likes to joke around. And Sangyeon likes to joke around too but he's not too certain how far he's allowed to believe aspects of this joke. 

Jaehyun sweeps the palm of his bare hand across Sangyeon’s cheek and holds it there (it isn't even snowing so there's no reason to try to melt anything between them like this). Jaehyun says, "Have you decided yet? Where do you want to go?" 

Sangyeon hasn't decided yet. He hasn't dared ruminate over the decision since the office closed for the winter break. But he's not sure whether or not thinking about it seems ungrateful or presumptuous. Jaehyun's fingers feel cold against Sangyeon’s face so it is absent kindness to curl his fingers about the hand at his face as he replies, "I haven't decided yet. Isn't there anywhere you want to go?" 

"Not particularly. I want to go to lots of places but you should decide first."

"You're not being very responsible about this gift, you know. What if I said I wanted to go to Europe. Next week. Could you afford that?" 

"Probably not, actually. But I'll save up. I'll take you anywhere in the world."

They're nice words, even if they're a bit strange. Sangyeon can't help but laugh at them while Jaehyun climbs to his feet and pulls Sangyeon up from the ground. 

"I mean it," Jaehyun says. 

"Alright," Sangyeon says. 

Sangyeon isn't sure if he does believe that Jaehyun could take him anywhere, let alone the notion that Jaehyun will take him anywhere. Regardless of Sangyeon’s belief, Jaehyun is good enough to him that just the thought is enough. Maybe they really could go anywhere. 

"Sangyeon, there's a shooting star!" Hyunjun calls over. His voice floats across the cold air as the sweetest of mists right before Eric shrieks the same sentence to clear the air between them all. 

Sangyeon and Jaehyun scramble to the telescope where the kids are. The kids point out to the sky and Hyunjun even nudges Sangyeon towards the eyepiece of the telescope but he can't see whatever the kids had seen. Even without seeing the shooting star himself Sangyeon grins at Eric. 

"Did you make a wish?" 

"I'll do that when we have my cake," Eric replies flippantly. 

"That will be your birthday wish. This shooting star wish will be different," Sangyeon explains. "Make this wish too."

"Let me think of something," Eric says as he closes his eyes. 

"Wish for me to win the lottery so I can quit my job," Sunwoo suggests. 

"What did you wish for?" Jaehyun asks. The question is quiet enough that Sangyeon can guess the question is just for him while Hyunjun and Eric veto all of Sunwoo's wish suggestions. 

"I didn't make a wish. I didn't see the shooting star."

Jaehyun sighs. "You'd better hope my wish comes true then."

"What did you wish for?" Sangyeon asks. 

"You'll find out when it comes true," Jaehyun says. 

The answer isn't helpful at all but Sangyeon doesn't mind so much when Jaehyun presses his palm against Sangyeon’s and squeezes his hand tight. Sangyeon’s hand is still cold but he barely feels the chilled discomfort when Eric finally decides on a wish. 


	14. Waiting In Line

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The gang don't manage to miss the winter-travel rush

As far as the eye could see the cars on the road were bumper to bumper. That being said, Sangyeon couldn't really see beyond the cars immediately in front of him as the flurries of snow whirled across the windscreen. The wipers were useless against the clumps of snow that teased against the glass and cycled densely in the air. 

Traffic had not been moving for a while and luck had abandoned Sangyeon once more. Planes had been grounded and trains had been cancelled and Sangyeon’s promise of getting the kids to various stations to get home had been scuppered before he knew it. 

Christmas wasn't ruined, per se, but Sangyeon could only stare through the blind of the blizzard and see what a disappointment relying on him must have been. But the kids were too nice to say anything. Jaehyun too. In the spaces where he should have been telling Sangyeon off for being too ambitious was the sound of Jaehyun twisting in his seat to joke around with the kids in the back. 

Jaehyun had plans too. He'd delayed his trip back to see his family for the sake of some extra time with this fabricated little family unit. He was laughing now but his expression had been lost when he heard that signalling issues and snow had shut down transport links. A call to his parents to explain why he wouldn't be home for Christmas went on for far too long with Sangyeon unable to close his ears to it all and pretend he'd not been so happy to have everyone with him in the first place. 

Sangyeon wonders what sort of day he could cobble together for everyone to ease the disappointment but to even do that they'd need to be able to actually move. Instead they are stuck, unable to move forwards or backwards. They are simply idling as the weather blusters around them. 

"I'm bored of this," Jaehyun says as he switches off the radio. 

"Sorry."

"What are you apologising for?" Jaehyun asks. He looks genuinely confused by Sangyeon speaking at all. Jaehyun's hand absently finds Sangyeon’s knee as a fulcrum as he turns to the kids in the back once more. "It's DJ Hyunjae time. Any requests?" 

Sangyeon wonders whether the weight on his leg is really as much as it feels. If asked he'd probably estimate Jaehyun is pressing half of his bodyweight just on that one spot of Sangyeon’s body so there's no way he could mistake the presence. Of course that would be a stupid estimate and he knows Jaehyun doesn't possess half that much intent in an action like this. Jaehyun's hand is just resting on Sangyeon’s knee like it is nothing and saying something about it might turn it into something. Sangyeon doesn't particularly want to do that with an audience, even if the audience comprises of some of the people Sangyeon loves most in the world. 

"No matter what we say we know you're going to put on that stupid jingle bell rock remix," Sunwoo points out. 

"How dare you call it stupid?" Jaehyun asks. Sangyeon feels something in the pause and looks at Jaehyun in time to see the aversion of a gaze. Jaehyun is back to the kids. "Don't think that I won't throw you out of this car myself if I hear anything against that song again."

"Aren't you the one who said we're not allowed to talk about that song in front of Sangyeon?" Hyunjun asks. 

"Exactly," Jaehyun says. "So stop talking about it. You all get to pick one song each now hurry up."

"Do I get a song?" Sangyeon asks. 

Jaehyun taps his thumb on Sangyeon’s knee like he really needs to consider the question. Then he says, "I suppose so."

"I pick 'All I Want for Christmas is You', but only on the condition that you play it once and never again during this journey."

"You're evil, did you know that?" 

Sangyeon smiles. He had a suspicion this would be the response to his request. 


	15. Winter Selfies

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The gang take a family portrait

Sunwoo has been doing a lot of research lately, Sangyeon thinks. Everyone knows that Sunwoo has been spending a lot of time in the IT department lately but Sangyeon had never been able to work out why. Even after asking directly the response was that Sunwoo had picked up photography as a hobby. Sangyeon liked taking pictures too so he didn't see why Sunwoo smirked the way he did when he rejected Sangyeon’s offer to give him some pointers. 

Patience running thin due to the amount of time Sunwoo is taking to position everyone is a good indication of why Sunwoo was never interested in hearing from Sangyeon. It isn't anything quite so candid as what Sangyeon likes to capture. 

Sunwoo clicks his tongue and grips Sangyeon’s shoulders tightly to twist him into a posture Sangyeon thought he was already holding. Jaehyun catches Sangyeon’s eye and snickers. Even he isn't brave enough to speak up after he tried to make fun of Sangyeon for being a bad model and getting told off by Sunwoo himself. 

"If you two don't stop messing around we won't do this at all," Sunwoo says, steady but warning. 

"Who is messing around?" Jaehyun asks, maybe a bit braver than before. 

Sunwoo glares at Jaehyun. "When my family call worrying about why they haven't heard anything from me, you can explain that you're the one who ruined Christmas."

"Aren't you exaggerating?" 

Sunwoo's expression doesn't budge. Jaehyun's smile withers and his gaze drops for a moment. Sangyeon can't imagine the words that are being swallowed back before Jaehyun looks up at Sunwoo again. 

"We'll behave."

"Good!" Eric grumbles in Sunwoo's stead. "I'm getting cramp from sitting on Sangyeon’s stupid hard floor. Would it kill you to put some carpet down or something?" 

"Are you volunteering to help?" Sangyeon asks. 

Eric turns to stare dourly up at Sangyeon on the sofa and earns a clip around the ear from Sunwoo for his trouble. Eric rubs the back of his head and grumbles, "Why don't you just move in with Jaehyun? He's smart enough to lay carpet down."

"Thats where you're wrong," Sangyeon says, smugly. "The carpet was left behind by the people who lived in Jaehyun's flat before he did."

"Are you done?" Sunwoo asks. "Have you finished squabbling and ruining this picture I am trying to take to commemorate Christmas?" 

"We're done," Sangyeon says. He hopes nobody says anything further and tries to sit how Sunwoo instructed. 

Sunwoo looks happy enough with that (though it is only a relative term with Sunwoo looking less irked than before) and sets the timer on the camera before taking his own position on the arm of the sofa beside Jaehyun. He settles into a position and right before the burst of snapshots says, "Now everyone say, 'Hyunjun is the best'." 

Nobody says it but Hyunjun laughs enough that Sunwoo tells him he is a let down when he's trying to pick out photos to send to everyone later that afternoon. 


	16. Found Family

Sangyeon tends to turn the heating up quite high when he's at home. He'd rather be toasty than freezing when he knows just how bad it is outside. Sangyeon isn't cold but his fingers are linked with Jaehyun's all the same as they pretend to watch a movie together. 

Warmth is still spreading between their hands and it is comfortable like this, even if one of Sangyeon’s arms has gone to sleep and his need to pee has grown more pressing in the past twenty minutes. There is more warmth against Sangyeon’s chest where Hyunjun has nodded off to sleep after the feast of fried chicken Jaehyun organised for them all. Hyunjun didn't say no to offers of more food for once and his afternoon slump has ended in full-blown sleep. Sangyeon doesn't have it in himself to disturb Hyunjun for now. 

Jaehyun keeps turning away from the TV to peer at the door between the living room and kitchen that was left ajar while Eric makes… A surprise. Eric didn't provide any clues beyond confirming the surprise is sweet. Sangyeon is dubious about the results but the eerie calm in his kitchen is what he hopes to be a positive sign. 

"Can you try to relax?" Sangyeon asks. Jaehyun flinches and looks at Sangyeon. There's half a second of tightness before Jaehyun clocks Hyunjun snoozing and his face eases into a soft grin. 

"He's so cute," Jaehyun says. He leans across Sangyeon to ruffle Hyunjun’s hair. "Is it ridiculous that we're like this with them? I love them all so much."

"They're our kids," Sangyeon says. He doesn't quite understand himself how he feels so responsible for people they've collectively taken under their wings from the company. But even without understanding Sangyeon knows he wouldn't have it any way. 

The weight of Hyunjun’s head on his chest is a comfort in itself. The quiet sense of reliance is enough for Sangyeon and he wants nothing more than to do everything possible to help out his younger friends like this. 

But then there's another friend, tightening his grip on Sangyeon’s hand between them, and Sangyeon can barely work out why their contact has so often hinged on limits further from the norm. There's something different when Sangyeon looks at this other friend. Sangyeon thinks he might rely on Jaehyun more than he is comfortable admitting. 

"Thank you," Jaehyun says. 

"What for?" 

Jaehyun leans back a bit and glances towards the kitchen again before glancing at Sangyeon almost as though he doesn't quite want to. But he clears his throat, coughs away all traces of coyness, and looks right at Sangyeon. "Thank you for letting us have Christmas here. Even though I think it is weird that you were so anal about the office decorations when you haven't decorated your own home, I am glad we're all together like this. Us and our kids, you know? And thank you for entertaining this stupid… family thing all this time."

"You don't need to thank me for any of that," Sangyeon says. He feels serious when he says it but he can't quite smile when he has so much that he wants to say to Jaehyun. He doesn't have the time to work out what he should say to Jaehyun as Eric rushes into the living room to tell on Sunwoo.

"Sunwoo is trying to give you all salmonella!" Eric says loudly. Hyunjun stirs awake at the sound and Sangyeon supposes it is Eric who must bear the full blame for waking him. 

"How can I give anyone else salmonella by eating raw cake mix? If anything I am saving everyone from the risk by taking it all upon myself."

"If Eric says you're trying to give us all salmonella then that's what you were doing," Jaehyun says, almost stern. 

"Are you even going to listen to me?" Sunwoo asks. 

"Not a chance," Jaehyun grins. 

"I need a drink," Sunwoo grumbles. He turns and heads back into the kitchen as Hyunjun calls, "Me too!" after him. 

Jaehyun beckons Eric closer and rests a hand on Eric's back as Eric perches on the arm of the sofa. "Are you going to be a big boy and make your cakes without telling on Sunwoo for every little thing?" 

Eric's smile drops. "Are you making fun of me?" 

"Never."

Eric looks between Jaehyun and Sangyeon and his brow furrows. "You wait and see what surprise your cake has for you."

Jaehyun waits until Eric is back in the kitchen and Sunwoo has returned with drinks for himself and Hyunjun to look at Sangyeon aghast. "Did you hear that? He just threatened to kill me."

"You'll live. But aren't you the one who was worried about how Eric was getting on in there?" 

"Not now! He just threatened to kill me. Me! His father who has raised him for two months. Unbelievable."

"You're an idiot," Sangyeon says. 

"You're both idiots," Hyunjun says into Sangyeon’s shoulder. "Are you watching this awful movie or what?" 

"Sorry, Hyunjun," Sangyeon says, slipping his hand free to squeeze Hyunjun close. "We'll shut up now."

"Don't tell fibs."

Sangyeon doesn't refute it though. He can't without becoming a liar. 


	17. Confession

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Jaehyun gets something off his chest

The kids are occupied with Eric's Christmas present when Jaehyun approaches Sangyeon and asks to go for a quick chat. So they go to sit on Sangyeon’s bed and have a chat. 

Rather they sit in silence as Sangyeon waits for Jaehyun to spit out whatever is bothering him. Unfortunately for Sangyeon they're interrupted by a knock at the door and Hyunjun complaining about being hungry. He is several steps into the bedroom before he takes stock of the situation. He excuses himself quietly and reverses out of the bedroom once more. 

Sangyeon imagines the disturbance has delayed Jaehyun's chat by a fair bit longer. He's not very good at pretending not to be annoyed but perceived irritation could very well prolong this. Sangyeon sighs and Jaehyun jolts awkwardly. Unusually meek for Jaehyun if Sangyeon was forced to pick it apart as something strange. 

"The kids are going to starve if we don't sort them out soon."

"Probably," Jaehyun agrees. He takes a deep breath and lifts his gaze to meet Sangyeon’s. "I have a confession. I don't want you to think any less of me but I think I should get this off my chest. Could you maybe promise not to hate me. We've come a long way since we first met and you hated me on sight."

Sangyeon wants to tell Jaehyun that they never got off to a start that bad. But it wouldn't be worth mentioning if the confession was going to be bad enough that Jaehyun would be dithering over it like this. "Jaehyun, what did you do?"

"Do you remember in that first big meeting we had after you'd just been seconded into the Education Personnel team? And your phone rang and you were really embarrassed?"

Sangyeon remembers. At the time it had been the worst thing that had happened in his career. For years, Sangyeon had held a grudge over the fact someone had gone out of their way to change his ringtone to a blue version of a christmastime classic (in July for some terrible reason) and ensured his phone wasn't on silent when they called him during an interdepartmental meeting so that he'd be humiliated. But Sangyeon isn't sure why Jaehyun is looking so concerned as he mentions it. 

"I already knew that was you."

"You did?" Jaehyun boggles. "How?" 

"I probably should have guessed from the way you were laughing the hardest of anyone in the room," Sangyeon says, "but it wasn't until we had to exchange numbers that I realised it was definitely you."

Sangyeon had immediately realised why he'd received a phone call from Jaehyun way before they had a reason to contact each other. This isn't the worst thing that Jaehyun has done to Sangyeon. There's no reason for Jaehyun to look so shocked about it. 

"You knew that was me this whole time?" Jaehyun asks. 

"Yes. I don't know anyone else who is as obsessed with that Angel on a Mission video as you are."

"And even after that you're still in love with me?"

"Maybe I really did push you down the stairs," Sangyeon muses. "I can't think where else you'd have sustained a brain injury severe enough to think that."

Jaehyun laughs. The sound is bright and clear and Sangyeon is almost confused about how genuine the difference between Jaehyun's hesitation and his current laughter is. 

"Everyone knows that you're in love with me. It's alright, you'll feel better when you admit it."

"You try it then," Sangyeon suggests. 

There's a pause before Jaehyun laughs. "This feels like a trap."

Sangyeon can't see what part of this would be a trap but Sangyeon isn't going to wait around for Jaehyun to speak any sense. They have more good to make and eat in excess, so Sangyeon slaps Jaehyun's shoulder and gets up from the bed. 

"Everyone already knows you're in love with me too, Jaehyun. Let's get some food."

"Yeah," Jaehyun says quietly. Then louder he says, "Actually, I'll borrow Hyunjun to go and pick something up for everyone. You should chill here."

Sangyeon considers the offer for a fraction of a second but staying home would be the right thing to do. 


	18. New Year's Party

After seeing his family for a few days and being stuffed with more food than he'd thought possible Sangyeon is glad about being back home. It might have a little something to do with the messages Jaehyun had been sending in the days since they were apart. 

Jaehyun had sent messages narrating his own family gathering to the point that Sangyeon was sure the stream of consciousness transmission must have been noticed by everyone he was with. Sangyeon was just as guilty, reciprocating with reactions and observations. He became more careful with his responses after an agreement that had him wondering what the exact terms were. 

Jaehyun smiles at Sangyeon across the table, almost apologetically. Declining all the same plans felt strange, especially when it included turning down Hyunjun’s invitation to enjoy the connections he has made. Hyunjun sounds like he is having fun even without Sangyeon and that feels strange too. It is even stranger now in Jaehyun's flat - just the two of them, the tacky decorations the two of them set up almost a lifetime ago at the start of the month, and a clumsy meal laid out on the table between them. 

"Sorry," Sangyeon says. "I should probably put my phone on silent. Checking it is like a reflex."

Jaehyun smiles, soft. "Hyunjun told me you always reply to him within a couple of minutes."

It sounds about right and Sangyeon wonders how to untangle himself from this conversation. It isn't anything too bad but Jaehyun looks like he might ask why it usually takes Sangyeon so long to respond to him. If asked, Sangyeon wouldn't know what to say. He could have avoided this by going to that new year party Hyunjun invited him to. 

Sangyeon takes a mouthful, wonders what isn't quite right about the cream pasta Jaehyun made. The taste isn't quite there but something about it remains when he chases it off with a swig of water. 

"It's quiet without any of the kids," Sangyeon says. "But we can't help ourselves talking about them."

"Sometimes it is good to spend time without them."

Sangyeon falters. He and Jaehyun have spent a lot of time together lately. They have spent a lot of time without the kids too. He just doesn't get it. 

"Usually people spend time with as many people as possible for the new year."

"Yeah. But there are some things I'd like to just clear up with you."

"That's ominous," Sangyeon says. 

"It's nothing bad," Jaehyun says. "I hope not anyway. And no matter what, the conversation we have now isn't going to interfere with anything. At least it won't on my side. If you don't like it there's no obligation to keep spending time with me or to even take me on the trip for your secret santa present."

Sangyeon sighs. He looks across the table at Jaehyun and wonders. He wonders aloud, "What have you done that justifies me taking someone else on the trip I'm supposed to take with you?" 

"I am fairly certain you already know," Jaehyun says uneasily. "But just in case, I really mean it. I don't want you to feel like I expect anything from you."

Jaehyun sips his own water and isn't quick enough to mop up the water that dribbles from the corner of his mouth. Sangyeon can't laugh at him for it. He's still too confused about Jaehyun being so serious when they're trying to eat. 

"What is going on with you?" Sangyeon asks. He doesn't even give Jaehyun half a second before adding, "Are you going to tell me something else I already know? You're the mysterious culprit who keeps stealing my ties and pens, right?" 

Jaehyun looks down at his chest, too guiltily considering he isn't currently wearing a stolen tie. He tries a smile and stabs some pasta with his fork, casual, and says, "You're smarter than I give you credit for. But just in case you're as dumb as I have been hoping you are, I should probably ask what you think about dating."

Jaehyun presses his lips together and waits. And Sangyeon waits a moment too. And then supposes Jaehyun has finished talking. 

"Is that you actually asking? Because that is such a strange way to phrase a question."

"Please, just be half the dick I know you are."

"I haven't really thought much about going out with anyone," Sangyeon says carefully. "I don't have the time for it. And then meeting someone is difficult at this age, you know? The only people you meet easily are at work and that's just complicated. It might even be a bad idea in some cases."

"Are you done?" Jaehyun asks. "Have you had fun being a colossal prick? Is it fun and cool to be so annoying?" 

"What do you want me to say?" 

Jaehyun sighs. He sits back and something flickers out in his eyes. "You're right. Nothing. It doesn't matter."

"Did you want me to say that I've been in love with you all this time and I have been so desperate for you to love me back that I reject all the signs of reciprocation because it is too good to be true?" Sangyeon asks. Jaehyun looks more annoyed than ever and Sangyeon wonders why he likes this so much. "That's not exactly true anyway. But you know as well as I do how awkward this already is: you flirting beyond the point of it being a joke, me being more annoying than necessary whilst hoping you'd do something crazy and kiss me."

"You kissed me."

Sangyeon smiles. He should have expected Jaehyun to fire back with that. He nods. "I kissed you."

"And you never did it again," Jaehyun adds. 

"Oh, did you want me to kiss you again?" Sangyeon asks, bright and brassy enough to shade his tone with irony. "Is that what I was supposed to do after you wouldn't let go of my hand and you spooned me one time and then agreed to throw money on a ridiculous trip with me? Sorry, I must have missed that after all those times you mentioned hating that couples massage I got you last year."

Jaehyun laughs, bitterly terse, folds his arms across his chest. "Are you messing with me? Just because I made fun of a gift you pretended was for me but was actually for you?"

That isn't exactly it, but Sangyeon will take it as an excuse. He could pretend to have been burned by the fact Jaehyun committed so strongly to the act to get through a spa weekend and then made fun of Sangyeon over the incident for over a year. Pretending to be hurt over something he'd thrown away a long time ago might sting at a wound that had never truly healed. 

The spa was never anything to think too hard about and Sangyeon had racked his brains for long enough that buying an experience over a material gift was beginning to sound like the best idea. Jaehyun hadn't said much about it when Sangyeon handed over the envelope containing print-outs of brochure pages. He'd only asked if Sangyeon was going to come with him and tucked everything away into a desk drawer before asking for Sangyeon’s opinion on how best to extrapolate enrollment statistics to make the data look better than previous years. 

It wasn't until after the massages, and the complimentary prosecco, and the patio dining, and lounging in the sauna, and sharing a bed of Egyptian cotton, and the outdoor cinema experience, and the round of golf, and the Ferrari driving experience that Jaehyun said anything. For months and months afterwards the weekend was condensed only to the massages which Jaehyun claimed to think of as the funniest thing in the world. 

Sangyeon learnt to laugh - at himself, at everything Jaehyun said - and doesn't think it would be surprising to admit he hasn't retained too many memories of the weekend. The memories weren't so precious that Sangyeon would be annoyed about the fact that the time was quickly reduced to a joke. 

Sangyeon can laugh even now. "Do you think I could keep this up for so long if I was having you on?" 

Jaehyun doesn't say anything for a moment. Simply drops his gaze to Sangyeon’s phone on the table as it buzzes lethargically. His eyes linger on the call for attention. "I think you could," Jaehyun admits. "I think that you probably do know what you're doing. How else can you pretend not to notice that I have been waiting for you to like me back for all this time?"

Sangyeon is tired. As much as he likes seeing Jaehyun wind himself up he doesn't like knowing that small words can do the same to him. He sighs. "Like you back?" 

"Obviously," Jaehyun says. "Are you going to say that nothing changed for you? Are you going to say that weekend last year was just any weekend for you?" 

A lot of things have changed for Sangyeon. He hadn't much liked Jaehyun since their first meeting revealed nobody was off-limits when poking fun. But Sangyeon had warmed to Jaehyun and been doused in disillusionment more times than he could even count. Things had changed so many times that Sangyeon had struggled to grow accustomed to the lack of change recently. Even calmly adding another kid to their brood and uniting over little things at work had been so unusual but seeing Jaehyun look so happy about it had Sangyeon keeping his thoughts to himself. 

That weekend was nothing out of the ordinary in the grand scheme of things. 

But something is changing right now. 

"Can you really say something like this?" Sangyeon asks.

"I don't have a choice," Jaehyun says. "I'm not saying you have to like me but I would appreciate knowing whether I'm the only one who means this. I am going to lose my mind if you look at me one more time like you're going to kiss me."

"If I kiss you afterwards would you be alright?" 

Jaehyun deflates, a long hissing sound streaming from between his lips as he looks over at the plastic tree in the corner of the room. And then he stands up and stacks their plates. "You win. Happy new year. I'll see you at work. You can show yourself out, right?"

Sangyeon doesn't move. He listens to Jaehyun clatter about in the kitchen with plates and pans and the stream of water filling up the sink. Jaehyun huffs loudly when he returns to collect the rest of the crockery and cutlery. 

"Did you throw everything away?" Sangyeon asks. 

The thing is, Jaehyun can't help himself. He sneers, "Did you?" 

It is only because Jaehyun can't help himself that Sangyeon follows him to the kitchen. He leans against the counter stacked high with the evidence of Jaehyun’s efforts to cook. He tries not to smile too obviously but he can feel the way his face is stretching, almost blissful. 

"This is weird."

"Why are you still here?" Jaehyun asks tersely. 

"You said you like me. You said you were waiting for me to like you back. But you missed it," Sangyeon points out. "I already like you, Jaehyun."

Jaehyun turns off the tap and glares at Sangyeon. "Can we stop doing this, please? I just had to bare my entire soul to you just then and I kind of hated it."

Sangyeon would hate it too. But he can't hate this. He reaches for Jaehyun's jaw to tilt his face down just slightly enough that Jaehyun holds his breath and shuts up. 

"Things might not work out. What would you do if we found out we don't fit well together? There's going to be more than just holding hands and spending money on the kids."

Jaehyun nods, holds onto the hand Sangyeon has at his jaw. Jaehyun swallows but the dry of his mouth is audible when he speaks. "We're grown adults. We'll work it out. I've thought about it and I think we could do it."

"You think we could?" Sangyeon asks. 

"We will."

Sangyeon wonders whether it is true. There's no telling just how they could work out any differences but they've worked well as a team until now, even whilst both skirting around admitting insignificant secrets. But there isn't much point contemplating things like this without being able to confirm the outcome. 

"Let's just take things slowly and keep it quiet."

"I don't think it is possible for you to shut up about how in love you are with me," Jaehyun says, a minor tremor in his voice. 

Sangyeon’s fingers flex against the side of Jaehyun’s face. He's scared too. But Jaehyun started this. If everything goes wrong Sangyeon can just make Jaehyun take responsibility for it all and Jaehyun will probably do the same to him. 

"I'm sorry," Sangyeon says as sincerely as he can manage. 

Jaehyun smiles. "It's my fault. It is impossible not to fall in love with me."

He might be right but Sangyeon won't give him the satisfaction of admitting it just yet. He holds back his thoughts and kisses Jaehyun like the first time, feels how impatient Jaehyun is as he gets pulled closer, and hopes he can kiss Jaehyun like this every time. 


End file.
